INDIAN NATIONALS PURCHASED $2.2 BILLION OF US HOMES LAST YEAR
— LayoffHedge (@LayoffAI) July 24, 2026
Always follow the money. Nobody believes the H-1B visa is temporary. Not even the banks.
A 30 year mortgage against a visa issued 3 years at a time only makes sense one way: the lender expects the borrower to stay.… pic.twitter.com/CiuMyk5dIF
Always follow the money. Nobody believes the H-1B visa is temporary. Not even the banks.
A 30 year mortgage against a visa issued 3 years at a time only makes sense one way: the lender expects the borrower to stay.
Per NAR's 2025 report, buyers from India purchased $2.2 billion of US homes last year. 97% of those buyers already live here. 66% bought a primary residence, the highest share of any nationality. They had the lowest all-cash rate of the top 5 countries. 57% took out American mortgages.
Fannie and Freddie buy those loans "under the same terms that are available to U.S. citizens." Direct quote from Fannie's selling guide.
How does a 3 year visa clear a 30 year loan?
Because the 6 year "limit" has a loophole. Under a 2000 law called AC21, once a green card case has been pending a year, the H-1B renews in 1 or 3 year increments with no cap on renewals. File for a green card and the temporary visa becomes indefinite.
And the line never moves. The green card queue is 1.1 million Indians deep, and CATO puts the wait for new applicants at 134 years. "Pending" means forever, so the visa renews forever.
USCIS's own numbers show it: 65% of FY2024 H-1B approvals were continuations for people already here, not new arrivals.
Underwriters see all of this. A pending green card counts as evidence the income will continue. The mortgage industry looked at "temporary" and priced it as permanent.
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